Illinois’ Alcohol Tax Is Almost As Old as America. It Needs Reform.
As the alcohol industry innovates with newer products like high alcohol content beer or ready-to-drink cocktails, the efficacy of a categorical system continues to break down.
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Short FormAmerica’s 250th: The Evolution of Excise Taxes
British taxation on the American colonies was a major catalyst for the American Revolution, but most of the tax revolts leading up to the war were in response to one tax type: excise taxes.
4 min read
Wine Taxes by State, 2026
Whether a sommelier or a casual enjoyer, wine drinkers may not be aware of just how much they are paying in taxes to uncork their drink of choice.
6 min read
Beer Taxes by State, 2026
In the United States, taxes are the single most expensive ingredient in beer. The tax burden accounts for more of the final price of beer than labor and materials combined—the many different layers of applicable taxes combining to total as much as 40.8 percent of the retail price.
7 min read
Illinois Proposes Fixing Alcohol Taxes by Breaking Them Again
Alcohol taxes in Illinois have been broken for decades, and the state is now considering a “fix” that moves policy in the wrong direction.
6 min read
Distilled Spirits Taxes by State, 2026
The significant disparity in tax rates across states underscores the complex tax and regulatory environment governing distilled spirits.
9 min read
Facts & Figures 2026: How Does Your State Compare?
Facts & Figures serves as a one-stop state tax data resource that compares all 50 states on over 40 measures of tax rates, collections, burdens, and more.
2 min read
Excise Taxes Are Most Harmful to the Poor
Excise taxes are regressive, and other alternatives are frequently available to incentivize behavior change.
6 min read
The Best Way to Tax Alcohol
The most effective way to tax alcoholic beverages is to tax according to alcohol content, rather than beverage type.
5 min read
Beer Taxes in Europe, 2025
With much of the continent celebrating Oktoberfest, it is a great time to examine beer taxes across Europe. Hefty beer taxes increase the price consumers pay for their libations.
5 min read
The Limits of Using Taxes to Improve Health and Reduce Harmful Consumption
While well-designed excise taxes can make society better off, some of the health taxes proposed by the WHO use a pretty façade to cover for policies that fail to deliver their promised benefits.
5 min read
Facts & Figures 2025: How Does Your State Compare?
Facts & Figures serves as a one-stop state tax data resource that compares all 50 states on over 40 measures of tax rates, collections, burdens, and more.
2 min read
Learning from the First Trade War: Retaliation Hurts US Exporters
As we learned in the first trade war, retaliation will exact harm on US exporters by lowering their export sales—and the US-imposed tariffs will directly harm exporters too. US-imposed tariffs can burden exporters by increasing input costs, which acts like a tax on exports.
4 min read
Mexico Proposes Best-Designed Alcohol Tax System in the World
The proposed ad quantum tax would be the system that most closely follows the global best practices for alcohol taxes we previously outlined.
4 min read
Brazil Proposes Major Overhaul of Its Alcohol Tax System
The Brazilian government is poised to make the biggest change to its alcohol tax policy in recent history.
6 min read
State Tax Changes Taking Effect July 1, 2024
Summer has arrived and states are beginning to implement policy changes that were enacted during the legislative session (or are being phased in over time).
13 min read
Beer Taxes by State, 2024
Different layers of taxation on production and distribution combine to make up about 40 percent of the retail price of beer.
3 min read
Distilled Spirits Taxes by State, 2024
Newer products like spirits-based hard seltzers and ready-to-drink cocktails have fueled growth, while also blurring the lines of a categorical tax system. The result has been a spirited competition throughout the alcohol industry for market share, including calls to reform tax policy.
3 min read
Facts & Figures 2024: How Does Your State Compare?
Facts & Figures serves as a one-stop state tax data resource that compares all 50 states on over 40 measures of tax rates, collections, burdens, and more.
2 min read
Maryland Proposes a Lower Tax Category for Ready-to-Drink Cocktails
A tax based on alcohol content would be the most neutral, straightforward means of raising revenue from alcohol. But since such a tax would constitute a redesign of the entire alcohol tax system at both the state and federal levels, the next best approach is to create more categories for new products.
4 min read